Climbing the RFID Learning Curve RFID World Sydney Aug 46, 2004

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Climbing the RFID Learning CurveRFID World
Sydney Aug 4-6, 2004

• Alfio Grasso
• General Manager
• RFID Automation
• Research Associate
• Auto ID Laboratory, ADELAIDE

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Overview

• Brief RFID history
• RF regulations
• RFID in Australia
• RFID implementation plan
• Assessment criteria
• Data issues
• Human issues
• Champion

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Brief RFID History

• RFID used in WWII friend or foe
• Commercial application in Automatic Data Capture
• Early RFID applications in closed loop
  applications
• Vehicle toll
• Asset management
• Time and Attendance
• AutoID Center, formation and EPC (2000)
• Gillette purchase (2003)
• Walmart mandate (2003)

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RF Regulations

• Regulators
• Classify RFID as Industrial, Scientific and
  Medical use
• ISM bands
• 125-134 kHz (ISO 18000-2)
• 13.56 MHz or HF (ISO 18000-3)
• 433 MHz (ISO 18000-7)
• 860 to 960 MHz or UHF (ISO 18000-6)
• 2.45 GHz (ISO 18000-4)
• 5.8 GHz (no ISO standard)

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EPCGlobal

• 13.56 MHz
• HF Class 1
• UHF
• UHF Class 0
• UHF Class 1
• UHF Class 1 Generation 2
• Common world UHF usage
• 902 to 928 US
• 865 to 868 Europe (proposed)
• 956 to 960 Japan (test)
• 918 to 926 Australia

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RFID in Australia closed loop

• Vehicle Identification
• Passenger and commercial vehicles
• Rail
• Passenger, Sugar, Minerals, Steel
• Waste Management
• Domestic and Industrial
• Access Control
• Time and Attendance, Vehicle
• Manufacturing
• Library

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Electronic Toll Collection
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Extended Read Range
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Vehicle ID, Sugar Industry
Photos courtesy of Mirrabooka Systems
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Steel Production
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Hot-Axle Detection and RFID
Photo courtesy of Sugar Research Institute
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Location ID
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Location ID
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Industrial Waste Management
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Domestic Waste Management
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Manufacturing
Photo taken at Hendersons Automotive Technologies
Pty Ltd
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Library
Photos courtesy of the National Library Board
Singapore
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Warehouse Management
Photo taken at Carlton United Beverages
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Photo taken at Carlton United Beverages
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Implementation Plan

• The need, mandate compliance, ROI
• Define your RFID implementation
• Compliance
• Reduce Inventory
• Stock Visibility
• Reduce Costs
• Increase asset utilisation
• Reduce shrinkage
• Reduce/eliminate shipping errors

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• Investigate world standards ISO or EPC
• Choose frequency of operation
• 13.56 HF or UHF
• Extensive pilot or test plan
• Develop assessment criteria for solution providers

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• Evaluate Solution Providers
• Tag Manufacturers
• Reader Manufactures
• IT infrastructure
• Installation
• Commissioning
• Maintenance
• Upgrades

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• IT System impacts
• Interface to existing system, or new system!
• Accuracy of that data
• Accumulation of much more data
• Decision processes with that data, making the
  data USEFUL!

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• RFID issues in your environment
• RF Interference
• LAN, Other RFID Readers, EMI, Bluetooth, 802.11
• Metal
• Moisture
• Allow time for experimentation
• Expansion
• Duplication

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• RFID Design
• Hardware Systems
• Fixed or portable RFID readers?
• Business processes
• Simulation?

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• Equipment Supply
• Development
• Manufacture lead times
• Engineering work and preparation
• Deployment of infrastructure
• Readers and Antennas
• IT Systems
• Ancillary equipment

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• Tags
• Supply
• Initialisation (EPC code and data)
• Database update
• Installation
• Verification
• Training
• Employees, Managers, IT development

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• Integration into IT systems
• Database design
• Scalability
• New/Existing
• Interim period
• Exceptions, when no tag applied!
• Evaluation of performance
• Fine adjustments
• Upgrade path

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• Other partners
• Suppliers
• Customers
• Competitors
• Finally Rollout
• Duplicate (other sites, divisions)
• Expand (RFID applications)
• Leverage (RFID infrastructure)

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Assessment Criteria

• Range of Hardware
• Tags, Readers, Volume, Vendors, Standards,
  Frequency, Host platforms, Ancillary equipment,
  Upgrades, Expansion
• Range of IT Solutions
• Integration into legacy systems
• Privacy
• Expansion
• Services
• Global or Local
• Site Inspection, Design, Installation,
  Commissioning, Maintenance
• Partner networks (hardware, middleware)

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• Relevant experience in your industry
• Testing
• ISO 18047-X Conformance Test Methods
• ISO 18046 Performance Test Methods
• Vendor test Facility
• Testing your products in your installation(s)
• Development/Customisation
• Tags and Readers, ancillary sensors
• Packaging, Cost, IP issues
• Maintenance

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Reader Issues

• Reader location is important, but local
• Antenna
• Tunnel/Portal (multiple antennas)
• Circular Vs Linear
• Host Interface, online
• Remote restart
• Alarm/alerts/Heartbeat
• Self diagnostic tests
• Upgrades

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Location Location Location

• Tag location will be crucial for performance
• Want global use for product/tag life
• Optimal location for RF Tag may not be the same
  as the location for a human readable tag/label
• Consider composition of the object
• If lots of metal, then look for gaps!
• Metal surface can be used to extend the read
  range ?/4
• Life time environmental exposure

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• Consider a change to the process flow
• How package is handled, stored and pallet stacked
• Change packaging to be RFID friendly
• Test tag after application
• Metal, moisture, damage

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Data

• RFID data
• Once installed, no real additional cost to read a
  tag
• Sensor data
• Temperature, Weight, etc
• Savants filters/concentrators
• RFID enabled enterprise applications
• Database maintenance
• Legacy data
• Accuracy of data
• Exchange data with partners
• Vendors and Customers
• UCCnet Global Registry
• Scalable

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Human Issues

• Privacy
• Establish a privacy committee
• Consider all users, employees, contractors,
  customers, vendors, supply chain personnel
• Employees
• Explanation
• Efficiency, bottom line benefits
• Training

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Champion

• Approval from the TOP
• Realistic Expectations
• Start small but think big
• Small enable fine adjustments (experiment)
• Big so as to leverage RFID throughout the
  business
• Dont oversell
• External/Internal expertise
• Partner with both suppliers and customers
• Possible change to business processes
• Other infrastructure
• Sensors, EAS, anti-counterfeit, engineering
• Periodic assessment

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Web

• Subscribe to online publications
• Journals, Newsletters, Manufacturers, Industry
  Associations
• Favourites
• Http//www.rfidjournal.com/
• http//www.hightechaid.com/
• http//www.abiresearch.com/reports/RFID.html
• http//www.rfidtalk.com
• Other sources
• http//members.surfbest.net/eaglesnest/rfid_mfg.ht
  m

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RFID Solution Providers (alphabetical order)

• Alien Technologies
• www.alientechnology.com
• AMSKAN Ltd
• http//www.amskan.com.au/
• Applied Wireless Indentifications (AWID)
• www.awid.com
• Connecterra
• www.connecterra.com
• Consultancy Services International
• bw_at_2-csi.com

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• Datanet
• www.data.net.au
• EM Microelectronic
• www.emmicroelectronic.com
• Feig Electronic
• www.feig.de
• High Tech Aid
• www.hightechaid.com
• IBM
• http//www.ibm.com

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• Impinj
• www.impinj.com
• Integral RFID
• www.integralRFID.com
• Infineon Technologies AG
• www.infineon.com
• Interlogic
• www.interlogic.co.nz
• Intermec
• http//www.intermec.com

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• Magellan Technology
• www.magtech.com.au
• MeadWestvaco Intelligent Systems
• www.meadwestvaco.com
• Mirrabooka Systems
• gary_at_mirrabook.com
• QED Systems
• www.qed.org
• Radio Terminal Systems
• www.radterm.com.au

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• RedPrairie
• http//redprairie.com/
• RFID Automation
• rfidautomation.org
• RF Code
• http//www.rfcode.com/
• RFIP Solutions
• turner.c_at_virgin.net
• Scanology
• www.scanology.nl

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• Texas Instruments
• http//www.ti.com/tiris/
• ThingMagic
• www.thingmagic.com
• Tyco/Sensormatic
• http//www.sensormatic.com/home.asp
• UPM Rafsec
• www.rafsec.com
• webMethods
• www.webmethods.com

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Conclusion

• RFID Automatic Data Capture
• RFID is about management
• Lots of RFID experience in Australia
• Plan
• Educate users
• employees, customers, suppliers

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Start Today!
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Further Information

• Alfio Grasso
• General Manager
• RFID Automation
• Auto ID Laboratory, Adelaide
• University of Adelaide
• Web www.rfidautomation.org
• Email alf_at_rfidautomation.org
• Ph [phone]
• Mob [phone]

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